The Facts:
Synopsis: A divorcing couple fight over the custody of their 8-year-old son
Stars: Billy Porter, Luke Evans, Robin Weigert, Andrew Rannells, Isaac Powell, Phylicia Rashad
Director: Bill Oliver
Rated: R
Running Length: 104 minutes
TMMM Score: (6/10)
Review: Though hardly considered widely mainstream, films centered on LGBTQI+ romance have risen in profile over the past decade. These thoughtful features depict the everyday familiarity between two people meeting and falling in love, with the expected complications along their path to ultimate happiness. As more and more stories are told, there are various reasons why some work better than others. We could get a dud like My Policeman for every strong performer like Love, Simon, and Fire Island. I didn’t react as positively to Ammonite, Supernova, Bros and Red, White, & Royal Blue as some did, but I love the complexities of titles like Beach Rats, Holding the Man, and Portrait of a Lady on Fire.
Now comes the second wave of these relationship films, which depict the breakdown of a bond and the shockwaves it can send through a network of friends and colleagues that have been weaved together during the union. Adding a child to the mix ups the stakes immeasurably, putting a film like the new release Our Son into a modern-day Kramer vs. Kramer column, and it turns out that it mostly sits comfortably in that space. Dampened by a third act that wanders and a pat finale that attempts to assuage with convenience, Our Son is otherwise a significantly mature peek behind closed doors and into open wounds.
Married for 13 years, Nicky (Luke Evans, Dracula Untold) and Gabriel (Billy Porter, 80 for Brady) are raising their 8-year-old son Owen (Christopher Woodley) in the heart of New York City. A book publisher eternally on the clock, Nicky is the parent always on the move, arriving for Owen’s school functions slightly after they’ve begun, while stay-at-home dad Gabriel never misses a beat. The husbands have grown apart, and although Nicky would prefer more solo time with Gabriel, his better half understands that once they became parents, someone else had to come first. We gather that Nicky has been aloof to Gabriel’s need for him to be a better co-parent for some time, and the chasm between the two has widened to the point where Gabriel decides to separate and eventually ask for a divorce from Nicky.
Shell-shocked and blindsided, when he finally does accept that this is happening and his life will be forever changed, Nicky hires a lawyer (Robin Weigert, Smile) who advises him on what steps he would need to take to become Owen’s full-time parent. Despite rarely taking an active role in parenting until that point, Nicky first uses Owen as an object to win Gabriel back and, when that doesn’t work, ensures that Gabriel’s new life is anything but excellent. Their shared friend group is at a loss on who to back, resulting in strain from all directions. Both men have strong and supportive mothers (Kate Burton, Dumb Money, and Phylicia Rashad, Creed) who want them always to keep their child at the forefront of every decision.
Writer/director Bill Oliver’s film doesn’t take long to get to its first emotional beat (Gabriel’s announcement almost seems as shocking to us as it does to Nicky) and continues to find believable ways to show how this relationship gradually frays before snapping. It’s often hard to watch, and while it’s not as cruel as some straight cisgender relationship dramas have become, there is a sliver of angsty turmoil that is always at the periphery, poised to strike a low blow. Those looking for a climax with sharp lawyer speeches and teary testimony should look elsewhere, Our Son prefers to have its day in court by instead allowing its characters to adjudicate their dispute on a more human level.
A multiple-award-winning star of stage and the small screen, Porter tackles his first notable lead in a feature film by tapping into his deep well of emotional range. Gabriel has been stuffing down his feelings for years, and when he can verbalize what he’s been holding on to, it’s a cathartic moment that scares him simultaneously. He knows he is blowing his life up for him and Owen, but if he’s to lead by an example for his son, he needs to live his truth. On the opposite side of the coin, Evans is well cast as the half of the couple that feels like he is missing out on…something. He doesn’t know what, but it’s an elusive mystery gnawing at him. The newfound freedom only drives that urge to pound louder in his ears, drowning out rational thoughts that should tell him he’s fighting the wrong battle with Gabriel at the expense of their son. Of the notable cast of familiar NY stage actors completing the supporting cast, Weigert is commendable as a lawyer who wants a win for her client while also considering where his true happiness lies.
More movies like Our Son will inevitably be made, and I can only hope they’ll be sketched with the same careful hand Oliver employs. It can fall into some maudlin moments (as good as Porter is, he isn’t above a little stagey melodrama), and sending Evans into a late-night odyssey of self-discovery where he meets a young stud (Isaac Powell, Dear Evan Hansen) is more of a narrative distraction than the rounding off a character’s arc of adjustment. Nevertheless, there’s a grounded authenticity to the people and their conversations, making this story feel universal and timely.
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